Crime And Punishment
by OtterFrog
Summary: Uh oh, Jojo's in big trouble with both his school and his dad!
1. Chapter 1

Crime And Punishment

Ned leaned back against the doorway that led to his small son's bedroom and gave a great sigh. He looked, and also felt, completely miserable. He sighed again and looked down at the small wooden paddle he held in his right hand and wearily tossed it aside.

'Oh Jojo, why did you drive me to this?' he thought sadly. 'You left me no choice! Couldn't you have seen that?'

He could hear coming from the other side of the door, low heart-rending muffled sobs. Ned turned slightly, longing to go back inside, hold his son close and tell him he was sorry, sorry oh so sorry! But he also knew if he did, the lesson wouldn't be learned and the problem continuing.

It was just the week before when he made the threat. Jojo had suddenly began to cut school for apparantly no reason.. While his parents didn't mind him spending his spare time at the observatory away from his family, school was one thing they both firmly believed in, if for different reasons.

"You can't be much of a mayor if you don't have the education to back yourself up!" Ned had declared. Sally had just added "And for anything else you'd like to do when you're grown, as well."

Jojo seemed to take both as a challenge and more reports of cutting had come in. First the punishments metered out were simple, staying in his room, then adding extra work such as mowing the house roof lawn. Neither seemed to have any effect.

Then Ned forbade Jojo from even going up to the observatory, a statement that made Jojo even more sullen. It worked for a bit but after that privilege had been restored, the same school news started up again.

Ned had had it at the last note. He had sat silent during breakfast while Sally took care of the girls. When the chair of his son's came around, he didn't remain seated himself, but got up and stood over his son. Jojo looked up, startled at the change of events and also startled at the look on his father's face.

"Young man, your mother and I had tried to be reasonable. We have tried all we could think of to make you realize that cutting school is not acceptable, and never will be acceptable. You have been given chance after chance after chance. Well, no more!"

Jojo stared up silently, and gave a small gulp. Ned continued.

"I hate to do this, but you leave us no choice. The next time, the VERY next time we hear you have cut class, you, young man, will be going over my knee! Do you understand me?!"

Jojo had actually blinked at that, then when the clock rang noting his time was up, he slowly slipped off the chair and, edging carefully around Ned, quickly made his way out.

Ned let out a long breath as if he had suddenly deflated. He felt the same too. Sally came over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Dear, are you sure about this? It's been ages since we had to take a hand to any of them!"

"Sally, we tried everything else! I have to get it through to him that he just can't go gallivanting around as he pleases! He has to become responsible for his own actions. He's no longer a mere toddler, after all."

Sally gave a sad nod. He was right. "Well, I hope this time he listens."

Ned sadly looked in the direction Jojo had gone. "I hope so too."

The threat seemed to have worked for the next few weeks. Things apparently turned back to normal. Then…

Ned came back in with the morning paper, ready for the breakfast ritual as always when he noted Sally regarding him with large sad eyes. "What?" he asked, puzzled.

Wordlessly Sally handed him the note from school. Ned scanned it, then once more gave a great sigh. "."

"You don't have to go through with it," Sally told him. "Just let him have another chance."

"And then what? He'll just keep on doing this!" Ned put his head in his hands. "I told him the very next time. Well, this IS the very next time! And as Horton would say, 'I said what I meant and I meant what I said.' The other stuff doesn't apply however."

"Yes, I suppose you're right. But let's get through the girls first."

Ned tried to put on a bright false face as he and Sally greeted each of their young girls and sent them on their way. Then the last chair came up. Ned steeled himself by glancing down at the school note. Once again he stood up to the last chair. He spun it around, and he held up the note so Jojo would see it immediately.

Only, there was no Jojo there.

"What?" Ned glanced about, but there was no sign of his small son. If he was thinking about backing out of dealing out the punishment, his mind was quickly set. "Jojo! "

He stalked over to the door that led to Jojo's bedroom. Along the way he wondered to himself just what method he was going to use in his son's punishment. His hand? No, might not be enough. A belt? No, too much. A switch? He gave a mental wince. Waay too much! Then his foot snagged a toy and he looked down. The long rubber line connecting a rubber ball to a small wooden paddle was tangled around his foot. He bent down to free himself, then looked at the wooden paddle. Setting his jaw, he yanked off the line and ball, then continued to the door. He knocked.

"Jojo. Jojo!"

He did hear someone move about. He wasn't sure if Jojo was trying to hide or what. But now, the moment of truth. He took a deep breath, told himself to be stern, then opened the door and went inside.

Jojo was sitting on the bed staring at the floor with the same brooding look he wore every morning. Ned drew himself up and said sternly, "We've gotten another note from the school about you cutting." Jojo seemed to shrink within himself. "Do you have a reason for this? Any explanation at all? Anything?" Ned desperately hoped Jojo did have one. Just one simple excuse and both of them would be spared. But Jojo just looked down, bit his lip and silently shook his head. Ned sighed heavily and steeled himself. "Remember what I told you a few days ago?"

Jojo then noticed the paddle in Ned's hand and his eyes widened a bit. He swallowed, then gave a slight nod.

"Then you know what's going to happen now." Ned sat down on the chair next to the bed. "Come here."

Jojo slowly got off the bed and made his way over, still staring at the floor. When he reached Ned, the mayor picked him up and positioned him over his knees. Jojo struggled a bit, after all it was hardly a comfortable position. Then Ned brought down the paddle for the first blow.

Jojo gave a sharp yelp and struggled more but Ned didn't release him until he had dealt out what he thought was enough. Then he carried the small Who back over and set him back down on the bed. Jojo shrank away and curled up in a ball of misery, grabbing the pillow to stifle his sobs.

"Remember this," his father said in the same stern voice. "Each time you cut, I will be ready with this." He tapped the paddle against the bed post. "So just remember."

He turned and strode out and calmly closed the door. As soon as he was out of Jojo's sight he went limp and fell back against the door. Tears came to his own eyes at what he had done to his son. "Oh Jojo. If you only knew," he whispered. Something that his own father had told him when he was around Jojo's age came to the mayor's mind. In his flashback he himself was squirming in the undignified position across his father's knees and just before the spanking started he heard the words he never really understood until now.

"This hurts me far more than it hurts you, son!"

At the time he had thought it was just some grownup nonsense his dad thought up but now the truth came to him. He looked up.

"Dad, you were right. I understand now. Oh, how I understand." He sadly walked off.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

When his father had left his room Jojo allowed himself to break down completely and soaked his pillow with his tears. He also punched it a few times. It was just all so unfair!!! He –had- a valid reason to skip those classes, a very good reason.

He just couldn't reveal it. And look where it got him.

It took a while for him to get his sobbing under control and the tears to stop. He laid there for a bit, staring at nothing. He had tried to roll onto his back to stare at the ceiling but one try changed his mind. It was currently too uncomfortable a position.

That. Had. Hurt! He couldn't remember the last time he had received any sort of physical chastisement from either of his parents but he didn't think it would be this bad. He had heard other young Whos scoffing at their parents' attempt at discipline and how they brushed any sort of paddling off and came to think he could do the same. 'Either they have thicker fur than I do or they're lying through their teeth,' he decided. Most likely lying.

So he remained there for a bit until he was sure he could look and breathe the same as usual. He had no wish for his sisters to know what happened. Being heckled by 96 siblings would almost be as bad as the punishment itself.

Finally he got himself off the bed and drew his forearm across his eyes. Tear tracks darkened the fur along the sides of his face and he scrubbed at them irritably. There must be no trace, he told himself. Everything is the same, nothing happened. He gave a deep sigh and was annoyed when it ended in a shuddering sob. Stop it!, he told himself. He took up his backpack and after checking that the coast was clear, quietly made his way out of the house and off in the direction of school.

School. He hadn't looked forward to that place in weeks. Not since that group of thugs (he refused to even –think- of them as 'fellow students'.) moved in. A trio of rough Whos that thought it was amusing to tease Jojo just because of his size. Trevedale, Stevel and Derk (Jojo preferred to think of them as Trashel, Stupid and Dirt) were very large teens with their fur done up in spikes and colored in various hues of reds, yellows and oranges as if their heads were on fire. They preferred to lie in wait just a block or two down from school grounds then swagger out to meet him when he approached. At first the hassling was easy to ignore, the name calling and jeers. Then it grew into snatching his book bag and holding it out of reach. Then that evolved into snatching –him- up and tossing him about like a furry beach ball. He gritted his teeth at the thought. It was humiliating enough to be so small without adding sheer helplessness into it. And what made it worse was each time they seemed about to get caught in the act by an adult, they always made it look as if they were actually helping Jojo up! Making –him- the chump!!!"Darn, this guy just keeps falling down, y'know?"

Then one Who girl made the innocent mistake of mentioning Jojo having saved the town by yelling 'YOP!' at the top of the town hall's lightning rod. That just added fuel to the abuse as those teens hadn't been around during the Horton Event and had no idea of the terror that was felt and the total annilation that had been averted. "Yop? What the heck is –that- supposed to mean? Hey, say 'Yop!' for us, kid! Yop it up! Say 'Yop'!"

And of course he had to yell the word to either get his book bag back or to be released until the next time they wanted amusement.

The only way he could avoid them was to skip school altogether. He started just spending his time at the observatory and when that had been denied him as a punishment for cutting, he just sat there at the edge of the hill, just sitting. There wasn't much else for him to do. Going into town would mean someone seeing him and it all getting back to the mayor rather quickly. So he just spent his time sitting and throwing rocks into the vast canyon below.

Sitting and wondering if helping in saving Who-ville had been the right thing to do. After all, if everything –had- ended back there in the pot of boiling beezlenut oil, he wouldn't be having these problems, those Whos wouldn't even be around and he would be free of everything. But he quickly gave up that train of thought. He did want to live, after all.

He considered going to his father with the problem but then, knowing him, he'd make such a big deal out of it that Jojo could very well be snubbed by every young Who teen for being a 'snitch'. And he didn't want to appear weak and spineless in front of his father.

His mother? No, she'd have him go to his dad, because that would be what she thought best. 'Talk to your father, dear. I'm sure he would see a way out of this.'

If he tried to go to a teacher or counselor and report it, he would most likely get a pat on the head and told to 'run off and be a good boy'. Just because he was the size of a regular three-year-old Who didn't mean that he was supposed to be treated like one!

No, no matter how he turned the problem over, the only solution was to avoid the trio by avoiding going to school.

Which meant more trouble with his dad.

Jojo sighed and took his frustrations out on an innocent rock in his path. A fierce kick drove it up and over a wall and he heard the faint sound of breaking glass. 'Oh crud!' he thought as he quickly ducked his head and scurried away. 'I don't need that!!' At least being small had this advantage, he could sneak away while the adult Who looked around and demanded to know who threw the rock that broke his window!? He couldn't see Jojo past the low wall.

When he was far enough away so to not be thought of as the blame, Jojo breathed a sigh of relief and straightened up again. And found himself surrounded by the ones he wanted to escape.

"Hey, well looky here," Trevedale gave his ugly snorting laugh. "If it ain't the Yop kid! What's up, Yop?"

"We hadn't seen you around lately," Derk chimed in. "If we didn't know better, we'd think you didn't like our company!"

Stevel made his input after he reached down and picked Jojo up and held him out at arm's length. "And that hurts our widdle feelings!"

The small Who gritted his teeth. "Just…put me down and leave me alone, willya!? I've had enough!"

"Awwww, he's had enough, guys." Trevedale stuck out his lower lip in the imitation of a pout. "He's so cute when he's angry!"

"Whatcha gonna do, tough guy? Bite us?" Stevel grinned.

"Naw naw, Stev. He's gonna kick our ankles!" Derk laughed. "Ooooh the pain! The pain!" He started limping about in mock agony as the other two laughed.

"Maybe he'll get so mad he'll also tweak our noses! Like this!" Trevedale grabbed Jojo's small nose and twisted it, bringing tears to his eyes. "Uh oh, I think I hurt him! Look, he's crying!"

"I am not!" Jojo slapped his hand away. "Just knock is off already! Don't you guys have anything better to do, like pulling wings off butterflies or stealing old ladies' groceries!?"

"Oooooooooh!" the other two Whos edged away. "Better put him down and back away slowly, Stev! No telling what the Yop is gonna do!"

"Yeah. I think he's getting' mad! He could be dangerous!!"

In fact Jojo had been getting mad, so mad that all he could think of was to break the hold and get away. So he did the only thing he could at the moment. He grabbed Stevel's thumb and bit as hard as he could.

"Yeeeooowww!" Stevel dropped Jojo and stared at his injured hand. Blood was already staining the fur. "Dang it! Look what he did to me! The little bastard yop bit me!"

"Huh, maybe he has rabies and now you gotta go get them shots." Derk put in. "I saw on tv last night…"

But Stevel wasn't interested in hearing any reports about biting injuries. He glared in the direction Jojo had taken as soon as he was free and on his feet again. "Let's get 'im." The three ran off in hot pursuit.

Jojo knew he couldn't outdistance them in speed so he turned and ducked through fences and alleyways that were easy enough for him to slip through but not for the larger Whos. Unfortunately they also had strength on their side and sometimes they just barreled on, pushing or throwing the obstacles aside.

Jojo was running very short on breath when he had the school grounds in sight. Once there he knew the trio didn't dare pull any stunts. For the day at least he would be safe. When school let out was another matter but one he would tackle when it arrived.

He had almost reached the gate when he was snatched up once again. This time it was Derk holding him. "Oh you're in big trouble now," he sneered. "When Stevel gets done with you there won't be enough left for a table doily!"

Jojo didn't intend to give him the chance. He swung back his hand and poked Derk in the eyes. Once again he was dropped as the Who howled his discomfort. "My eyes! I'm blind! I'm blind! He blinded me!"

Jojo scrambled to his feet as the other two caught up. His blood was up and he was almost looking forward to a fight. He stomped on Stevel's foot as hard as he could, making him add his howls to that of Derk's. Trevedale snatched at him but Jojo dodged out of his way and with a calculated shove at the back of the knee sent the larger Who tumbling backwards. But now all the commotion was attracting attention from the schoolyard. Jojo was so busy gaining his revenge and dodging the grasping hands of the hated trio that he didn't notice another form behind him.

Suddenly he was grabbed a third time, this time by the scruff of the neck, and lifted up.

There actually were some things Jojo hated more than his father's constant mayor ramblings and being picked up by the scruff of the neck was high on that list. Not only did it render him helpless, but it hurt! (After all, it –was- his whole weight being suspended from the skin and fur of his neck!) He knew that the next thing that his assailant was going to do was turn him around so they were face to face so he squeezed his eyes shut, set his jaw and balled his right hand in a tight fist in anticipation. 'Come and get it,' he thought almost fiendishly. When he thought the moment was right, he swung out with all his strength. And connected with something with a sound sort of like a large melon being dropped.

Jojo was dropped as well and as he got to his feet as quickly as he could he became aware of the sudden hush all around. No-one seemed to be moving, all were frozen to the spot. Jojo looked around, nonplussed. Even the three punks had become statues with expressions of awed fright on their faces. 'Okay, this is weird," Jojo thought. 'There's those three there in front of me. So none of them grabbed me. If not them, then who did I hit?'

As if in answer to his unspoken question, Jojo heard a small gurgling sound behind and above him. Following the sound to its source, Jojo looked up to see the school principal holding his nose and his face twisted in pain. As Jojo watched in horror, blood seeped through the principal's fingers and stained the fur of his hand. With another gargled noise, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief to sop up the bleeding.

Now a whispering began all around as the crowd slowly broke up and backed away. 'Hit the principal!' Jojo heard. 'Smacked him tight in the face!' 'I think he broke his nose!' Even Trevedal, Stevel and Derk got up, brushed themselves off and quickly disappeared. All that remained was Jojo, the wincing principal and two teachers who had come to aid the wounded. As they led him away to the school nurse's room, he suddenly spun about and pointed a finger at Jojo. "You!" he growled. "In my office! Immediately!"

Jojo gulped and shrunk back. Now he was in for it.

'Dead meat' he thought. 'I'm dead meat!'


	3. Chapter 3

C & P Chapter Three

'This has got to be the cruddiest day I've ever had in my entire life!' Jojo sighed to himself as he slowly trudged back home. 'First that paddling by Dad, then the fight, I punch the principal in the nose and now…a whole week's suspension! If someone threw a porta-potty and it landed on me, it couldn't get much worse. Dad's gonna have a cow! Maybe I should just go off and find a quiet dark cave somewhere.'

He had sat waiting in the principal's office for a half hour while the injury were being attended to. The seat was, as much of the others in the school, much too large for Jojo and uncomfortable. The discomfort factor must be deliberately put in, the small Who decided. Make the poor unfortunate who had to be here even tenser. He wriggled about until he was perched on the very edge. At least that position was tolerable. Even so he almost slipped off when the door finally opened and Mr. Gristmel entered, glowering down at the small Who like a huge thundercloud. Well, like a huge thundercloud with a bandage taped across its nose. Jojo bit his lower lip and cast his eyes down to the floor.

"Well, I certainly hope you are satisfied with this, young man!" Mr Gristmel told him in a low growl as he took his seat behind the desk. "Thankfully my nose isn't broken but I'm going to have a lovely bruise for the next week. And what a coincidence, as that's how long you are going to be SUSPENDED!"

Jojo jerked his head up and gaped at the principal. "A..a..week?? A whole w-week??" he squeaked. " Sus-suspension??? But..b-but.."

"Yes! A whole week! And now you should be able to explain yourself, why were you fighting on school grounds and also why we are at it…" Here Mr. Gristmel placed his glasses on his face and studied some papers in front of him. "You may wish to explain the rather numerous accounts of you being absent from your classes."

And so Jojo had to blurt it all out, how Trevedale, Stevel and Derk had harassed him for so long and the reason he had swung his fist. The principal sat and listened to it all leaning back in his seat and with fingertips together and when Jojo had finished and miserably sat there in the too large chair, he took a deep breath, sat up and shook his head.

"As soon as you were having trouble with those three, you should have immediately come to either me or one of your teachers. I know, sometimes it seems like we don't do anything about cases like these but such can't be dealt with by just telling the perpetrators to back off. That would only make them more insidious in their attacks, mostly off school grounds. We have to collect more reports and also gather proof. This takes time but we have to go by the guidelines. If we just went up and dealt a punishment to a student with no proof whatsoever, we could find ourselves in the mess of a lawsuit. So, you see, while our hands do seem to be tied we can still take actions if enough information is collected. We've been aware of those three causing trouble for some time now, you weren't the only victim. We were simply waiting until we had enough evidence to do something about it. And now we have. They will be dealt with now. You no longer have to worry about them."

'And while you were 'collecting information and evidence' I was getting my butt kicked around' Jojo thought sourly. He was careful not to let that thought change his expression though. He only nodded.

The principal continued. "So while I do see you were simply defending yourself, we still have zero tolerance for violence on school property. Zero. The suspension stands. You –will- take this note to your parents, I trust? And the suspension starts today. I suggest you make your way straight to your house as soon as you leave my office."

Jojo had taken the paper with all the air of a condemned prisoner, stuck it in his pocket and walked out.

When he reached the intersection where it all started he saw his book bag still lying crumpled to the side. He didn't even glance at it but snagged it with his left hand as he passed.

He walked along dragging his book bag, not wishing to reach home at all but knowing he had to. He had his right hand in his pocket and his left hand held the bag straps. He felt the note of doom crumpled up and for one moment thought abut tearing it up and scattering it to the four winds. Or perhaps eating it. Wasn't that how secret agents kept information away from the enemy? But no, sooner or later news of this would reach his parents' ears (probably by his sisters reporting the latest gossip from the school grounds. He had no doubt what the hottest topic for today was.) and then he'd be in even more trouble. 'As if that were possible.' He sighed.

When he eventually reached his home he stood for a moment slumped on the front steps. He knew his father would be at the town hall until late but his mom would be home, along with the few sisters too young to attend school or only went to Kindergarten.

He opened the door and looked about. No-one in sight. Yet. He entered as quietly as he could, then sighed. 'Might as well find Mom.' He knew she would be either in the kitchen or in the girls' room at this time, cleaning up the breakfast dishes or making the beds. He tried the bedroom first.

Sally was up to the third row by now, humming to herself as she cheerfully straightened out the sheets and blankets. Jojo watched her for a moment, then gave a slight cough. Sally stopped in her work and looked down.

"Jojo? What are you doing home from school? Are you ill? Is something the matter?" she asked as she made her way down. "What is it, honey?"

Jojo looked away then took out the note and held it out. "I…just got into some trouble….at school." he mumbled.

Sally took the note and as she read her eyes became large and just a bit hard. "Jojo, what in heaven's name! You did what??? You hit. ..the. Principal??? A week's suspension??? Jojo!"

"It's not my fault! Well, not all my fault! It was those creeps! They made me do it!" Jojo tried to explain but Sally shook her head.

"If you were having such trouble you should have gone to me or your father. What made you think skipping school was going to solve anything?"

Jojo had no answer to that so he slipped back into his slouch and quiet stage.

"I think you had better wait in your room until your father gets home." Sally decided. "Go on. In your room and stay there!"

'Sure Mom,' Jojo thought as his stomach sunk about as low as it could go at the mention of his dad learning about this. 'I'll be in my room, writing out my Last Will and Testament because Dad's gonna kill me.'

As he made his way to his room some of his younger sisters giggled at him in the hallway. They didn't know exactly what was going on but they realized it was out of the ordinary. 'Jojo's in trouble! Jojo's in trouble!' they chanted at him as he passed. He shot them a dark look that made them scurry back around the corner.

He tossed his book bag aside in his room, not caring where it landed. Flinging himself on his bed, he stared up at the ceiling and wondered why his life had turned so bleak recently. He heard some of his younger sisters laughing as they rushed past the door busy with some silly game and he wished for a moment he was young enough to join in. When he was under 10 everything was much simpler. Just playing games with his sisters and even school wasn't that bad.

Then he became a teen and everything just seemed to fall apart.

It seems that overnight he was hammered with responsibilities and expected to grow up. Suddenly he was expected to 'set a good example for his sisters', and that's when the talks about becoming the next mayor started. Schoolwork seemed to intensify and increase and even his body was betraying him. He had tried singing one of his new songs in the observatory the other day and his voice had cracked in the middle of a high note. Even though he was alone with nobody else to hear him, he was mortified, crumpled up the song and threw it away, resolving to never to try it again.

Could it get any worse?

He laid there until lunchtime when he roused himself enough to go get a baloneyberry sandwich and a glass of milk, then returned to his lonely state. He tried to think of a reasonable excuse to feed his dad to at least take the edge off the notion of suspension but nothing good enough came to mind so he gave that up and stared out in front of him. Then studying the ceiling panels got boring so he began composing melodies and songs in his head. At least one thing hadn't turned on him! One tune in particular seemed suited to his current mood and he was pondering whether the main tubahorn could go low enough when he dozed off.

He was jerked out of his nap by the sound of his father exclaiming loud enough to wake him "WHAT??!" 'Oh joy', Jojo thought, resigned to his fate. 'Here it comes.' He swallowed hard and sat up on the edge of his bed as he had that morning, waiting his father's wrath. It was not long in coming.

He heard Ned's heavy footfalls coming closer and crossed his arms in an attempt to control his trembling.

The mayor stormed in, closing the door rather hard behind him, holding the wooden paddle in one hand and holding out the note from school with the other. "Would you care to explain this?!" he said sternly.

"I…there were ….these three guys, Dad. Roughing me up and…and….stuff.." Jojo's voice trailed away. He knew how feeble it all sounded but that was all that came to mind.

"And so you ended up in a fight and punched out the principal." Ned summarized. "And wound up with a week's suspension! Why didn't you come to me or your mother if you were having trouble? Something could have been done then! And now this will be on your record. It won't look good on…."

"On my coming up for the mayor position!" Jojo suddenly blurted out bitterly. He just couldn't take it anymore. "Is that all you care about? Huh? What about me?? I'M the one getting beat up just about every day! Beat up, kicked around, laughed at! YOU don't know what it's like, having everybody looking down on you 24-7! Making you the constant joke of the day! It's like everybody's waiting for you to screw up so they can get a good laugh out of it! And if you don't mess up enough to suit them, they go ahead and MAKE you mess up because they want their entertainment!! But what d'you know about it? You don't even care!"

Jojo turned his back on his father after his outburst and gritted his teeth. 'Oh smooth move, genius,' he groaned inwardly. 'It's not like he wasn't mad enough when he came in! Think that whacking you got this morning hurt? That's -nothing- compared to what you're going to get now!'

For a moment nothing happened, in fact it got so quiet Jojo could almost hear his heart pounding in his chest, then he felt his father sit down besides him on the bed with a heavy sigh. 'Ok, get it over with. C'mon, grab me and sling me over and beat me. I don't care any more!' the small Who thought with a slight sob.

Suddenly he felt his father rise up again. Jojo slowly turned his head to see Ned just standing there with a sad expression on his face. For a moment he just stood there, then he seemed to come to some conclusion. Ned tossed the note and the wooden paddle aside.

"Come with me.' was all he said and left the room.

Puzzled, Jojo obeyed.

They silently left the house and walked. Jojo noted it was towards the town hall and looked up at Ned. But his father's face was expressionless and even the greetings he gave to the people they passed was rather bland. Jojo had no idea what was going to happen. Wait, was his punishment going to be in the town square? Jojo gulped then he shook his head. 'No, dad wouldn't do that. He knows I would never speak again if he did that. Not even if we were going to be dropped in a tub of boiling tar!'

So where were they going and why? Jojo was getting a bit tired of not knowing his fate. It made his stomach twist up in knots and his lunch wasn't sitting very comfortably at the moment. He just wanted this to all be over and done with soon, even if it were another spanking.

They reached the town hall and silently climbed up the stairs. Jojo knew it was after the usual business hours and most of the offices were closed and empty except for a few Whos working late. Ned opened the large heavy door and motioned for Jojo to step inside. Jojo did ,then waited for Ned to show which direction to take then.

Ned turned to the large room where the town meetings were held. He unlocked the great decorated doors and opened them wide so Jojo could see the entire room.

It was vast, with a high ceiling and seats grouped along one side in rows and balconies set high above the main floor. Along the other side was a huge wooden desk reaching up two thirds to the top and spreading along most of the side of the other wall and Jojo could see the high cushioned backs of the chairs behind it. Down in front of the huge desk was a smaller seat and chair, sitting on the edge of the open floor as if it had been just an afterthought of the decorator. Jojo looked all around, feeling even smaller in the huge space.

"Have you ever been in city hall before?" Ned asked airily. Jojo shook his head. Well, that wasn't entirely true. He –had-, in a school trip once last year, but he couldn't see much of anything other than the backs of the seats where the class sat. Now that the room was empty he could see how huge and ominous it all was. So very official! 'So this is where all the major decisions are made,' Jojo thought in awe. 'This is where all the big wheels sit!' He could almost feel the power crackling like static shocks.

"The seats up there in the back are, of course, for the city council," Ned informed him with the manner of a tour guide. "The other seats set around.." Here he waved his hand about. "Are for anyone who wishes to attend the open meetings. We do get a full house at times here, especially during the elections."

Jojo nodded slowly, still taking it all in. Then he noted the smaller seat down on the lowest part of the floor again. He smirked. "So who sits down there? The dog-catcher?"

Ned was quiet for a moment, then he said softly "That's my seat, son."

Jojo froze, then his stomach, which had just begun to relax, twisted itself into even more knots. He opened his mouth, closed it and felt his whole face burn in an embarrassed flush under his fur. Great, where's a nice deep dark hole to crawl in when you need it?? If the floor would open up and swallow him whole, he'd be ok with that too.

He tried again. "Ah…gee dad, I…..I didn't…know.. I..wasn't meaning……any..thing…I…" He looked down at the floor and put his hands in his pockets, deeply ashamed.

Ned acted as if he didn't notice any change in his small son and continued with his narrative. "Yep, that's where I sit. All day sometimes. With all the council and the people in here just looking down at me. If I make any mistake, if I have any sort of goof, it's all right in front of everyone. And of course, each and every goof gets logged into the minutes by the secretary and kept in the records for all prosperity! And it does add up."

Jojo stared at the small, seemingly insignificant chair and desk. Even the back of the chair wasn't as high or elaborately cushioned as the ones for the council. It looked more like some cheap cast-off from a yard sale. The desk also was just plain unadorned wood with a few items sitting forlornly about. Looking up at the council's seats he could see the ends of large plumed pens adorning the surface and at the desk edge in front of the largest chair he could barely make out the handle of a very large fancy carved gavel. 'Gee, they won't even let Dad have that!' Jojo thought sadly. So his father –did- know what it was like to be looked down upon and not by just a few students either. The council plus anyone in the town did! He had had no idea, only that some days his father came home looking so bedraggled and exhausted he could have passed for a drowned pifflerat. No wonder!

"So…so you have all them..looking down at you," Jojo said slowly, trying to understand it all. "The council and anybody else. All the time."

Ned nodded. Encouraged, Jojo tried a question. "But why? It's not fair that –they- do that to you! The council has everything! All the power! I mean, who looks down on –them-??"

"The people, son," came the answer. "If the people don't like what the council does, they can very easily replace them. And the council, for all its pompous boobery, know that fact very well. Sometimes they get so frustrated about it that they take it out on me."

Jojo looked up at his dad then. "But….then why do you want –me- to…to become mayor, to do this?" Jojo waved his hand at the room. "To put up with that?"

Ned grasped the banister and leaned forward. "For change, son. For change. I love Who-ville enough that I put up with all that garbage so I can help make it better. So I can get rid of what doesn't work well and try to put in what will help others. You, my boy." Here he looked down and smiled fondly at Jojo, reaching out and ruffling his hair. "You can also create change for Who-Ville. Most likely better than I could. You have ideas you can put them to good use here. I know you do."

Jojo looked back out at the floor plan thoughtfully and didn't even mind the hair ruffling this time. For some reason the outlook of being mayor had changed. He wasn't sure how but it had.

Ned gave him the few moments of quiet study then said 'Are you giving it more thought now, son?"

"I..I think I'll….think about it." came the slow answer. It was enough for Ned.

"Good. So, c'mon. Let's go home. I think your mother made a nice casserole out of the leftover roast beast and I don't know about you, but I'm hungry!"

The way back to the house was also quiet but this time it was Jojo who was the one deep in thought. Then a new question came to mind, one matter that hadn't quite been resolved yet. "Um…Dad?"

"Yes, son?"

"Um….are….are you still….when we get back…you're still going to……use that paddle?"

Ned pretended to think a moment on it then nodded. "Yes. Yes, I believe I will."

Jojo slumped down a bit. "Oh. Ok." 'Well, after all I deserve it', he thought. 'Why did I think this little outing was going to change anything?"

"Yep, I don't know if I ever told you, but your old man was pretty darn good at Ping Basket Pong once," Ned said airily. "Almost took championship! I was thinking about breaking out that game and you letting me show you a few moves. Might as well learn something during the next week." He looked down and winked at Jojo.

Jojo could hardly believe it. Not only was he getting off the hook (well, basically. He still would have a lot of schoolwork to catch up on) but he would be spending more time with his dad! Inside he was turning cartwheels but outside he just gave a smile. "Sure, Dad!"

"Of course you're grounded for the next week, don't think you're getting off that easily," Ned shook his finger. "You do have to stay around home. And I must ask one favor from you."

"Um..ok. What's that?"

Ned stopped, then knelt down so he and Jojo were face to face. "Jojo. Please. Don't make me use that paddle on you again! Ever! All right?"

Jojo looked at him right in the eye. "No problem, Dad. I don't want to repeat that either!"

"Ok. Good! That's settled then. Let's go eat dinner then play some Ping ball!"

'Perhaps this day –wasn't- the cruddiest after all', Jojo thought happily. 'At least it had a happy ending!'


End file.
